While in Japan, you must spend a night in the serene atmosphere of a ryokan. Really. It’s an amazing Japanese experience. There are a lot of them spread across the country (even in central Tokyo) and they come in a vast array of price categories. The experience is more enjoyable if you go on the country-side though, like the region of Hakone close to Mount Fuji (and fairly close to Tokyo as well) for example.

Each spring Japanese people enjoy world’s most beautiful cherry blossom, due to the high amount of cherry trees in the country. This magnificent phenomenon usually takes place in the Tokyo/Kyoto area between mid-March and mid-April. The exact moment varies from year to year according to meteorological conditions, and this year it’s just about to begin now! The peak bloom is short and intense, so everything is about timing. Thepickytraveller was there in 2015.